


Love

by bigblueboxat221b



Category: Legally Blonde - Hach/O'Keefe/Benjamin
Genre: After Callaghan Kisses Elle, Emmett in Love, F/M, do not copy to another site
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-01-08
Updated: 2020-01-08
Packaged: 2021-02-27 05:27:57
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,006
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22171801
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/bigblueboxat221b/pseuds/bigblueboxat221b
Summary: Emmett needs to tell Elle he loves her - but she's closed her door to him after telling him what Callaghan did.
Relationships: Emmett Forrest/Elle Woods
Comments: 5
Kudos: 138
Collections: legally blonde





	Love

Elle’s voice broke as she voiced the words. “There’s no reason for me to stay.”

Emmett was so floored by her comment he couldn’t move, his eyes following her as she disappeared into her room, the door closing quietly behind her. The silence was complete, only his pounding heart sounding in his ears.

_What about love?_

The question came to him almost immediately, floating quietly to the surface of his still stunned mind. He’d gone as far as starting the sentence, drawing breath to say the words…but she’d blurted out what happened with Callaghan instead, and all thought of it went out of his mind. He could see her pain, the way she was so broken by her memory…it made him want to collect up all the pieces of her and hold her until he could put her back together.

But she’d insisted she was leaving, and he couldn’t stop her. Wouldn’t impose himself on her, not after what had already happened. But his heart broke too, as the door closed behind him, shutting him out. He’d tried to talk to her through the door, stopping short of declaring himself but trying desperately to tell her how much he wanted her to stay.

_Please…_

But there was no response.

Frustrated, Emmett shoved his hands in his pockets, at a loss for how he could help. His hand closed around something small and fragile. It crinkled and bowed as he curled his fingers around it, and he drew it out, frowning as he looked at the small piece of paper.

_Love._

He blinked at it, remembering where he’d picked it up. The department store. Impulsively he brought it to his nose, breathing in the familiar scent. Elle had convinced him to buy that new suit and impulsively he’d taken the sample on the way out, hoping the scent would remind him of how he’d felt that day. As though he and Elle might have a chance.

It was the first time the word _love_ had occurred to him, and it had felt right. Ever since then, he’d been hyper aware of Elle, and his heat beat fast when he realised they were going to walk home together from Callaghan’s office that night. On a high from court that day, Callaghan’s praise for both of them ringing in his ears…surely this was the moment.

Except that it wasn’t.

Blinking again at the paper in his hand, Emmett fumbled for the pen tucked into his breast pocket, hesitating for a second before scribbling on it. His hand was shaky but he hoped it was still legible as the echo of the scent curled around him.

A circle around the word ‘love’, and the simple message, _Is this enough of a reason?_

A deep breath, and he slid it under Elle’s door, knocking once more in the hope she’d at least look at the door and see the paper. Placing his faith in curiosity, Emmett stepped back, pressing his hands against the opposite wall. He’d wait fifteen minutes, he told himself. If she hadn’t come out by then, she probably wouldn’t. Pushing her away was not part of the plan, and if he fell asleep here it would look a little more stalkery than he would strictly prefer.

Emmett closed his eyes, trying to relax. His mind was racing, but he couldn’t get too caught up in the ‘what if’ game. There was enough happening aside from this to keep his brain from relaxing, but he knew it wouldn’t help for him to get worked up. Instead he breathed deeply, trying to think about nothing at all.

The click of a door opening made his eyes fly open, breath catching.

Elle stood in her doorway, her only makeup the faint circles of something dark under her eyes. She was still wearing the same clothes she’d worn to court, though her shoes had been kicked off. None of these details mattered so much as the fact that she held his note in her hand, and the expression on her face. Emmett swallowed, knowing this was the moment. One way or the other, he was going to get an answer.

“Emmett?” she whispered. The note of pleading was clear, and he knew she wanted to hear him explain.

“I was going to say, before you told me about…Callaghan,” he said, remaining on the other side of the hall; it felt like a million miles from her. “And then I found this, and it reminded me of that day.” He smiled self-consciously. “Love in the air, remember?”

“I remember,” she whispered, her eyes locked on his.

He shrugged, the effort of finding fancy words too much. “I love you,” he said. “And I hope that’s enough of a reason for you to stay.”

She blinked at him before crumpling the paper in her fingers. Emmett’s heart sank, and he nodded once, the defeat washing over him. Before he could turn to go, she’d stepped closer, taking his arm.

“Emmett,” she said, and the sound of his name in her voice was wonderful. “Please don’t go.”

“Isn’t that my line?” he said, hoping the little joke wasn’t too badly timed.

“Perhaps,” she said. “Maybe we both need to agree to stay.”

Emmett nodded cautiously. “Are you…okay then,” he replied. He wasn’t entirely sure what Elle was saying but he didn’t want to make any assumptions.

She smiled up at him, tears welling in her eyes. “If I was prepared to move across the country for love,” she said, “what I thought was love…it doesn’t seem like much of a stretch to not move across the country for the same reason.”

Emmett took a second to understand. “And you don’t even have to get into law school this time,” he said.

“No,” Elle replied. She eased closer, resting her hands on his chest as she smiled at him. “Sounds like it’s a much better deal this time.”

And she kissed him, and the world receded, Emmett’s heart finally full.


End file.
